Mediagazer: Candle Media plans to split into two divisions: animation will be folded into Moonbug and the rest will move into a live-action division called Candle Studios (Ben Smith/Semafor)

Top News:

Sources: Barry Diller is exploring a bid to take control of Paramount; his digital media conglomerate, IAC, has signed NDAs with National Amusements — Mr. Diller, a digital media pioneer, lost a bidding war for Paramount Pictures decades ago. Now, he's making a run at its parent company.

Discussion: CNBC, The Wrap, @benmullin, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, @jbmp51, @webbarr, Forbes, @jgdean14, @davidgura, @davidkeithlaw, Los Angeles Times, @davidpoland, IndieWire, @susanlitv, TVNewsCheck, Deadline and Bloomberg

Alex Sherman / CNBC:

Sources: Paramount Global is in discussions with other companies about merging Paramount+ with their streamers; WBD is interested in merging Max and Paramount+ — Paramount Global is holding talks with other entertainment companies about merging its Paramount+ streaming service with an existing platform.

Discussion: Variety, The Streamable, MediaPost, @cynicalfate, The Wrap, @sherman4949, The Information, Alex Sherman on LinkedIn, @culturecrave, Broadband TV News, @rdd147, @cnschedules, The Desk, Cord Cutters News and Media Play News

Melanie Goodfellow / Deadline:

VFX company DNEG raised $200M from Abu Dhabi's UASG at a $2B+ valuation to expand its Brahma division, which is developing an AI-powered, photo-real CGI creator — London-based The DNEG Group has secured a $200M capital injection from Abu Dhabi investment firm United Al Saqer Group (UASG).

Discussion: The Wrap, Proactive, Business Standard, The Hollywood Reporter, @dneg, Financial Times, DNEG and @malhotra_namit

Wall Street Journal:

Sources: Imagine Entertainment, led by Ron Howard and Brian Grazer, is seeking a buyer after receiving some inbound interest from a potential suitor — Production company behind ‘Apollo 13’ is working with bankers to explore a sale — Imagine Entertainment, the Hollywood production company known …

Discussion: Deadline, Variety, The Wrap and TVNewsCheck

Katie Robertson / New York Times:

Terence Samuel, the editor-in-chief of USA Today, leaves the role after a year; Caren Bohan, the executive editor of politics, is named interim EIC — Terence Samuel, a veteran journalist, had been in the role for a year. — Terence Samuel, the editor in chief of USA Today …

Discussion: USA Today, Poynter, The Wrap, @tatecurtis, @davidfolkenflik, @deggans, @dankennedy_nu, @katie_robertson, TVNewsCheck, MediaPost, The Hill and Deadline

Lucas Manfredi / The Wrap:

Ampere Analysis: in Q1 2024, Netflix and Amazon commissioned 53% of all original streaming titles globally, spurred by increased investment outside of the US — The growth comes from increased investment in international territories, according to Ampere Analysis

Discussion: New York Times, IndieWire, Next TV, The Desk, The Streamable, WORLD SCREEN, Media Play News, Broadband TV News, Variety, Deadline, Advanced Television and The Hollywood Reporter

Ben Smith / Semafor:

Candle Media plans to split into two divisions: animation will be folded into Moonbug and the rest will move into a live-action division called Candle Studios — The Scoop — Candle Media, the Blackstone-backed firm rolling up Hollywood production companies, is moving to slash costs …

Discussion: The Wrap and @semaforben

The Moscow Times:

Spotify has removed the songs and profiles of pro-war Russian artists sanctioned by the EU; their profiles remain accessible on Apple Music and YouTube — Music streaming service Spotify has removed the songs and profiles of pro-war Russian artists sanctioned by the West, the Sweden-based company told The Moscow Times on Thursday.

Discussion: Music Ally, Breitbart, Radio Free Europe/Radio …, @irgarner, @moscowtimes, Stereogum, Billboard, The Kyiv Independent, Consequence, Digital Music News and Hotpress

Marc Schneider / Billboard:

Merck Mercuriadis plans to step down as the chairman of Hipgnosis Song Management after closing the proposed acquisition of Hipgnosis Songs Fund to Blackstone — The company's founder calls it the “right time” to “undertake a strategic shift of focus.” — Hipgnosis Song Management announced …

Discussion: Variety, CMU, Digital Music News, Music Week and Music Business Worldwide

Sara Fischer / Axios:

CNBC launches a sports vertical as part of its broader plan to shift its editorial and business focus to cross-platform verticals led by subject-matter experts — - The company is expected to make more announcements about other topic areas soon. … - CNBC has hired sports valuation expert …

Discussion: Variety, @sherman4949, @bmccandless and CNBC Press Releases

Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:

YouTube rolled out a policy change in June that lets people request the takedown of AI-generated or other synthetic content that simulates their face or voice — Meta is not the only company grappling with the rise in AI-generated content and how it affects its platform.

Discussion: Shelly Palmer, @baekdal, Engadget, MEDIANAMA, Mashable and The Register, more at Techmeme »

Paresh Dave / Wired:

Some YouTube employees detail internal deliberations about content relating to the Israel-Hamas war and accuse the company of inconsistent moderation — Insiders have shared YouTube's playbook for handling the Gaza crisis. They argue that it shows inconsistent enforcement.

more at Techmeme »